Christmas and New Year in online games

When everyone decorates Christmas trees and gives presents to each other, you expect a holiday from your favorite game. Realizing this, developers organize festivals, activities and prize distribution in their projects, so that any gamer, picking a fork in the salad, could celebrate the new year with friends in the virtual world. And there - on what imagination is enough. Some MMOs raise the mood with a change of scenery, others offer fun contests, unexpected meetings, prize distribution, adventures and a lot of other content. We have chosen the best virtual holidays - so that no one will be bored.

Amazon Games always celebrates with a bang. This time the developers of New World have done everything to the highest standards, although they made things a bit creepy in the Eternal Frost add-on. The inhabitants of Eternum have already prepared for winter: they have stocked up on food, insulated their huts and offered prayers to the gods so that the monsters that arrived on the continent together with the cold would not harm anyone. But during the Winter Conjunction, everyone can forget their sorrows. After all, to prevent evil spirits from entering your home, you just need to decorate the house with lights, wreaths and garlands. The Tree of Light installed in the central square will dispel the darkness. If you're lucky, the Winter Wanderer will drop by, and if you defeat the monster with him, the heroes will receive a generous reward.

New Year's activities in the game are group activities - for the same quest of the Winter Wanderer you need to gather a squad of twenty people. Although there are quests for single players as well, such as searching for gleamite meteors that fall on the continent in random locations. Any activity earns you tokens, which can be exchanged for gifts, including themed costumes that will make you feel the holiday atmosphere. And if you play chess with your friends or take part in a contest in these outfits, you won't soon forget the festival. Especially those who have Prime Gaming subscription - it can't be helped, it's the genre. The fun will last until January 9, 2024.

The authors of another fabulous MMORPG TESO are not lagging behind their competitors. In the universe of "The Elder Scrolls" also begins the festival, which will last until January 9. To take part in the "New Life" event, you need to go to Eastmark and find Breda there. This will give you double the experience you get without any action - just log in during the holidays. And in the virtual store the heroes are waiting for the quest "Festival of New Life" and a bottomless mug with mead. After passing the debut mission, ten more daily missions will appear - nine from Breda and one from Petronius Galenus. For completing them, you'll be given boxes containing everything from incense and recipes to finished furniture.

Also among the New Year prizes are costumes and armor sets. For example, the Morningstar Frostwear outfit shown in the picture - as the developers show, it is suitable for fishing and hunting with friends. However, each opening of the box gives not only items, but also three festival tickets - a total of 60 of them can be collected during the event. And then spend them on something useful: consumables, saddles, ink, fragments, repair kits and, of course, horses. Ursauk, a fighter and assistant in the search for treasure, is among such pets. Bethesda employees remind that "New Life" is the last chance to get the third fragment of this beautiful beast.

The authors of this MMORPG will extend the holiday "Winter Day" only until January 2. But heroes of any level can take part in it, and the game itself, unlike New World and TESO, is available for free. Even if you are not familiar with "Guild Wars", nothing prevents you from creating an account and immediately get to the celebration. And here there are enough activities: you can perform as part of a bell ensemble, buy rolls of wrapping paper to strengthen with its help items of equipment, take part in races on horses, throw snowballs at each other, play capture the flag, and fight with someone. Even snowmen are represented as opponents, but to attack their lair you need to gather a squad and have at least level 80.

To start the winter adventure, you need to receive a letter from Tix with an invitation and go to the Divinity's Reach holiday center. Points of interest are already marked on the map - in the form of lollipops. Each such picture means one or another activity with prizes. Gifts are also waiting under the decorated trees and in the hut of Tix himself. Another letter will come from Orphan Lane, but it is intended for more experienced gamers. Those who are particularly active will receive resources and decorations. For example, themed costumes, weapons decorated for the occasion and fur shoulder pads. Some of the gifts, by the way, with a surprise - if you unwrap them, they can explode.

They celebrate Christmas even in space. And we are not talking about astronauts on the ISS, but about capsuleers from the most famous MMORPG about interstellar travel and warfare - EVE Online. It would seem that what can surprise pilots, who direct their ships to the far corners of the galaxy? But the staff of the Icelandic studio CCP Games have put their imagination to work. In some systems, for example, in connection with the Winter Nexus holiday will appear snow storms, among which lurk sources of raw materials, hotspots and hacking areas of the "Sansha Nation". And the visual effect of fireworks has been added to the rewards, so that until January 4, 2024, the space will be illuminated by the sparks of fireworks.

During the Winter Nexus, capsuleers will receive gifts every day. In addition to the already mentioned fireworks, you can become the owner of colors and threads, as well as hundreds of thousands of SP points. Gamers get the opportunity to decorate their ships as they please - separately it is worth noting the colors of the Aurora Universalis series with options for frigates, destroyers and cruisers. Also, everyone who makes a purchase in the gift store will receive a set of Luminae Polaris with ship camouflages in blue-green colors. Of course, all of this comes with a set of purchased decor elements. And if you don't have the heart to splurge, you can get these rewards in the epicenters of the storm.

Not only MMORPGs like to celebrate the New Year. Bungie's conditionally free-to-play shooter Destiny 2 will also bloom with all the colors at the end of 2023, because within the framework of the season "Wish" a whole event with gift distribution will begin. But first, the heroes must go to the Tower, decorated with garlands and spectacular lighting, where Eva Levante will hand out special assignments to everyone. Cooking enthusiasts will bake dishes from the trophy ingredients, which can be exchanged for something valuable from traders from all over the solar system. And then, if the spirit remains, they'll play snowballs - the "Charge" event offers to bomb monsters with them, acting as a team.

Naturally, there are also holiday outfits available in the Evers store. Although there's no need to spend resources on cheering up if you're ready to take part in regular activities that will last until January 2, 2024. They even have a separate location available in the "Assignments" tab - fighting on it, users will earn angel wings and sparrow, decorated in the style of a winter fairy tale. Also among the rewards was a new legendary glaive "Wing of Albedo", which can not only chop enemies, but also shoot them. Other themed items include weapons from the "Dawn" set and knitted hats.

Since we're talking about shooters, we can't leave out the Call of Duty series - in it the celebration will cover Modern Warfare III and Warzone multiplayer. Both games are preparing for the CODMAS festival, which will last until January 3. Even Santa is invited, but he performs in a somewhat rotten form, and you can fight him in zombie-mode. Especially for the New Year the developers decorated two maps - Shipmas and Hangover. The first one is a small snowy location for 6-on-6 combat, and the second one is a provincial club with a dance floor and strobe lights, where two teams of six fighters will clash. Both levels are exclusively night.

Along with the maps, two modes have been added to the games. Let's start with the infectious one, because this is where Santa Clauses appear in the form of zombies, which are controlled by gamers. You have to fight with this undead, otherwise your character will turn into a walking dead man with a furry red hat on his head. The second mode is an epic battle with snowballs. You can't make them anywhere, so you have to move around the location and replenish your ammo. Once per round, a golden snowball appears on the terrain, killing anyone with the first hit. If you are not enough extreme, you can take a ride through Urzykstan on the train, where the dead Santa is operating, and fight with enemies for Christmas tree ornaments.

Quite a few boxes have been put under the tree by Epic Games employees in the free "battle royal" Fortnite. Until January 2, users are promised to receive 14 different prizes, as well as a couple of hero costumes in Christmas style. To get your hands on the Winter Festival surprises, just log in to the game - and the "Deliver-a-Box" staff member along with General Frost won't be long in coming. The items in the boxes can range from outfit items, hang gliders, lobby music and just tracks, as well as snowmen with scarves and hats. As for the promised costumes, the hero will be allowed to be dressed up with a decorated Christmas tree ("Leshy") or wrapped in gift wrap.

And what's a holiday without activities? In addition to the daily quests, for completing 19 of which you get the "Wrecking Ball" pickaxe, you can also access the temporary "Deliver It" mode. In it, firearms are forbidden, so the heroes must fight in close combat or use throwing tools. It's not hard to guess why this is necessary: to hit the enemy with a snowball! And if someone goes to the store, he will find a set of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles", which includes not only four famous pizza lovers, but also their friend and journalist April O'Neil, in both regular and LEGO design.

In the multiplayer action game with survival elements, two important events are coming at once under the New Year. With the usual celebration coincided the tenth anniversary of the game - the company Bohemia Interactive simply could not fail to come up with interesting activities for gamers on this occasion. So load your rifles and head to the expanses of Livonia and Chernorussia, where decorated Christmas trees with presents under them have appeared again. Inside lies loot of different levels, but there is no need to fight for it with other gamers, because packages are generated automatically and regularly until January 9. However, if your hands are itchy, you can also shoot - it will do for New Year's fireworks.

In addition, the zombies are not dormant - they still attack any traveler, and they are accompanied by the undead Santa, whose sleigh crashes into forests and roofs of houses. At the crash site you can find a lot of surprises - for example, a white beard, reindeer antlers, mittens, a hat and a red sweater. As consumables for the winter events are lollipops, equipped with even a special animation of use. The developers said that they have prepared mysterious surprises for the game's anniversary. Bohemia Interactive employees don't tell what exactly they are talking about, but offer gamers to find hidden objects on the map themselves.

Another popular survival game, Rust, is also ready to celebrate Christmas and the New Year. Firstly, the developers from Facepunch studio have organized discounts of 50% both on the action game itself and on paid add-ons to it. Secondly, the players are waiting for a lot of interesting events. You won't have to sit on the base for a long time, because from time to time you will hear bells ringing - if you walk 40 meters in its direction, you can find a small, medium or large gift. Inside the boxes there are resources, weapons and candies. Once again the inhabitants of the virtual world will have to fight with gingerbread men in underground caves.

The virtual store has gotten the Rustmas range - with garlands, wreaths, snowmen and false beards. If you like not only shooting, but also decorating your home, now is the time to make it look festive. After all, along with the event until January 4, there will be a competition for decorated for Christmas houses in the world of Rust. It's easy to take part: you need to decorate your base, take some screenshots and send it to the developers - real money and several paid items from the game are promised as a prize. No more than three entries per person will be accepted.

The War Thunder action movie about military equipment battles on the ground, in the sky and at sea completes our selection. Its authors from Gaijin Entertainment offer to recharge adrenaline during the winter vacations - from December 20 to January 9. And you can do it with the help of decals depicting winter sports, such as snowboarding, skiing and snowmobiling. There's also a rewards event running during the celebration, allowing you to earn jewelry, camouflage, and even coupons for high-ranking vehicles - you can get a Mirage 2000C-S4 fighter jet, a Mississippi battleship, and a Vilkas HMS, for example.

For active participation in battles, users will be awarded trophies, each of which includes silver lions (virtual currency), boosters, wagers, orders, doubles and one day of premium account. If you have accumulated a considerable amount of lions and eagles, it is not unreasonable to look in the shop, where a lot of gifts from the Snowman are prepared for the New Year. To find out the conditions of tasks and prizes, you need to go to the achievements menu and select the "Winter Extreme" tab, and you can perform missions on vehicles of all levels, not just the third, as it happens usually. By the way, winter decal coupons can be exchanged with other players.

We hope that the selection helped you to find a holiday entertainment to your liking. We wish our readers a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and wish you health and more interesting games.